19. Anonymous Call

April 15, 1980:
At 9:15 this morning, I received an anonymous telephone call. I quote the caller:

“Herr Kuhner, if you do not withdraw your case,
we will send the public health officer.”
The caller then hung up.
The phone rang again, There was silence on the other end.
The caller did not answer my queries as to who was on the line.
I then hung up.

(The medical official mentioned can commit you to an institution
if he comes to the conclusion that your behavior is suspicious.)

Proof!?

“You cannot prove that the call came
from the Foreign Ministry.”
– Sigrid Löffler, literary critic

My mother lay dying while these events were taking place, It was the second time around for her. And it was that for me too. It brought past occurrences to mind. These more recent occurrences are not to be forgotten, just as previous occurrences are not to be forgotten.

Encounter at PEN

On September 19, 1977, I attended a PEN-Club reading at which Dr. Woschnagg was present. After the reading I went to the door to find him there with his hand extended. I did not take it and attempted to get by. He insisted on speaking to me. Here is part of our conversation.

Dr. Woschnagg: “I have nothing against you.”
Kuhner: “You do as you are told.”
Woschnagg: “I am a functionary.”
Kuhner: “And if you were told to kill someone?!”
Dr. Woschnagg: “That I wouldn’t do.”